The Voice of the Turtle

For all those viewers who have gotten their hearts broken in love (meaning practically all of us), for those who enjoy delightful romantic comedies, and for those of us who simply enjoy watching a nice solid '40s movie that has been put together by a group of seasoned pros, "The Voice of the Turtle" should fit the bill very nicely, indeed. Released on Christmas Day in 1947, the film was co-written by John van Druten, here adapting his hit Broadway play of four years earlier, and to winning effect.

In a nod to its release date, the film itself opens during the Christmas season of 1944, when we first get to meet the sweet and lovely Sally Middleton (Eleanor Parker), an aspiring actress who is in the process of being "dumped" by her current love interest, stage producer Kenneth Bartlett (Kent Smith, moustachioed here, for a change). Having recently been dumped by still another gent, Sally decides to call it quits with both men and romance for good. Her plans are soon derailed when her best friend, sassy Olive Lashbrooke (Eve Arden, here having perfected her "second-banana" supporting act to a fine science; "The war has made men so unpredictable," she declares at one point), decides to ditch her visiting suitor, Sgt. Bill Page (Ronald Reagan, here 33 years before becoming Ronald Raygun), in favor of spending the weekend with his commanding officer, Comm. Ned Burling (a very amusing Wayne Morris). Long story short: After Bill arrives at Sally's place to meet Olive and is summarily dispatched, Sally offers to let him sleep over at her place, resulting in a case of the mutual irresistibles between the two. But what of Sally's former oath? And what to do, when Olive soon decides that she wants her sergeant back?

The oddly titled "Voice of the Turtle" (perhaps potential viewers would be more understanding of that title if they knew that the turtle referenced is actually a turtledove, and that the title is drawn from a line in "The Song of Solomon": "The flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land....") is an extremely charming film, due mainly to the sensitive performances of Parker and Reagan, both here playing characters who've been hurt before and are tentatively wondering if they might ever find happiness again. Reagan has always been undervalued as an actor, I feel (and overvalued as a prez, but don't get me started on that), and he is both charismatic and likable here. But it is Parker who easily steals this film with her endearing portrayal of the kooky Sally. And boy, is she EVER kooky! This is a woman who loves nothing more than curling up on her sofa with a nice dish of potato salad. A woman who won't leave a percolator going or a radio playing in her apartment when she is away, for fear that they might wonder where she is! She is also a woman who, when serving two glasses of milk, OJ or champagne, must sip exactingly at one of them to even up the levels of the liquids in the two vessels. Today, I suppose, Sally would be diagnosed as having a pretty severe case of OCD, obsessive-compulsive disorder ("You're crazy," Page truthfully tells her), but that only makes her all the more endearing, somehow. Parker makes us really feel for the woman's plight of being pulled into another romance, despite her best intentions not to be. "Oh, that was a nice surprise," she sighs when Page first kisses her, in one of the film's sweetest moments. In short, she is absolutely adorable here.

"The Voice of the Turtle" was expertly helmed by Irving Rapper, a director more well known for having completed four films with Bette Davis ("Now, Voyager," "The Corn Is Green," "Deception" and "Another Man's Poison"), and he here elicits some wonderfully comedic and winning performances from his small cast of pros. Max Steiner has contributed a charming (there's that word again), sprightly score to complement the proceedings; another feather in the cap of the man responsible for the music in such films as "King Kong," "Gone With the Wind," "Casablanca," "Now, Voyager" and "The Searchers." The film is rarely laugh-out-loud funny but is never less than highly amusing. It is actually a fairly realistic experience, with honestly drawn characters in credible situations. The audience roots for Sally and Bill to find some happiness, and the film's ending will surely be a pleasing one for most viewers. Actually, I only had one small problem with the picture, and that is, in the opening, as I mentioned, it is Christmas season, at the beginning of a cold and rainy weekend, and a few days later, by the weekend's end, the weather has changed and it is early spring! But I guess time really CAN seem to fly, when you're falling in love again, right? This film comes more than highly recommended by yours truly...especially for those tentative individuals who are considering taking the plunge once again....

Irving Rapper's 1947 wartime comedy 'One For the Book,' is based on John Van Druten's Broadway play, 'The Voice of the Turtle.'

Eleanor Parker plays a young, struggling NY stage actress who's been disappointed with love, but agrees to go out with a soldier on leave (Ronald Reagan) after he's stood up by her friend (Eve Arden). They spend the weekend together and fall in love.

I don't think there was a prettier girl in all the movies then Eleanor Parker, who also had one of the loveliest speaking voices, so distinct and individual. On top of that, she's a marvelous screen actress, and this is one of her best early films, in Margaret Sullavan's famous stage role. (She even wears Sullavan's hairstyle with her trademark bangs.) Though she's usually at her best playing strong, domineering women, she's very charming in this entertaining romantic comedy.

Ronald Reagan, too, had one of his better film roles, and working with Parker brought out the best in him. With the exception of his dramatic role in 'Kings Row,' he's rarely this appealing, and his love scenes with lovely Eleanor are very romantic.

And Eve Arden is terrific as always as Parker's man-chasing friend.

A very bright, enjoyable romantic comedy, well directed and acted.

Why are some of the best movies so totally ignored? This is one of those rare films where the studio system produced one of its gems among the dross - it is charming, and gives the great Eve Arden some wickedly funny lines.

John Van Druten opens up his play in brilliant fashion for the screen by introducing a number of interesting characters. The film is romantic comedy at its best and it is shameful that this charming movie is not on tape or DVD and is not better known. Ronald Reagan is at his affable best and Eve Arden excels as always; the supporting cast includes Wayne Morris (in real life a true war hero), Kent Smith and John Emory. The real delight, however, is the performance of Eleanor Parker. To put it simply, she is completely captivating! Doug McClelland, in his book ELEANOR PARKER:WOMAN OF A THOUSAND FACES, is right on target when he comments on her versatility and her dazzling range as an actress of unsurpassed gifts. VOICE OF THE TURTLE is a complete delight no matter how many times it is viewed.

"The Voice of the Turtle" is a gentle comedy romance. The principal characters are an aspiring actress and an Army sergeant on a weekend pass in New York. The time is not clear - there's no news or hint of war, and not many servicemen or women around. But, besides the main character, there is a Navy commander. It would probably be around the time of the film - 1947, a couple years after World War II when there would still be some men in uniform.

Ronald Reagen is Sgt. Bill Page and Eleanor Parker is Sally Middleton. They meet when Sally's friend, Olive Lashbrooke (played by Eve Arden) stands Bill up for another date with Navy Commander Ned Burlin (played by Wayne Morris). Most of the comedy dialog comes from Olive in the biting, quirky lines that were Arden's trademark throughout her career in films and on TV.

Sally is somewhat shy and awkward, and Bill sees the humor or cheeriness in her character. Their relationship blooms slowly in film time, even though the period covered is but a weekend. The story is probably a much more realistic portrayal of dates of that type and time than other films have shown. The movie may seem very slow to some, and probably intolerable for those who thrive on a thrill-a-minute action films. But those who like light comedy and drama that shows a slice of life from a specific period should enjoy this film.

Incidentally, the title comes from something Bill says in the film. After he refers to the voice of the turtle, Sally asks "voice of the turtle?" rhetorically. Bill replies, "turtledove," and says it comes from the Bible. His reference was to Songs 2:12 - "The flowers appear on the earth, the time of pruning the vines has come, and the song of the turtledove is heard in our land."

My favorite line from the film is in the drugstore where people are waiting outside a telephone booth. A woman says, "I've been waiting for half an hour. How long can he talk for a nickel?"